Ouya to get sweeter at launch with Jelly Bean

Kickstarter-backed console Ouya will run on Android v4.1, Jelly Bean, according to an announcement on the official Ouya blog. The company had earlier stated that Ouya would run on Android v4.0, Ice Cream Sandwich, but it yesterday revealed that it has been successful in making Jelly Bean run on Ouya.

The blog post doesn’t give out any more details of the Jelly Bean experience on the $99 console, but it does outline the system’s capabilities. So, game developers can start developing before the dev kits and the SDK for the console are released in December. The post gives a general overview of the game’s hardware, interface, display, payments, software settings, and game art.

Ouya will have a controller that’s similar to a standard gamepad in terms of the number and configuration of action buttons. It will also have a single-touch touchpad that will work like a mousepad does on laptops. The post states that games should use controller buttons for all input. Ouya will not have any back, menu, or volume buttons, but will instead have a system button on the controller, which will bring up a standard pause menu. Ouya will also have a soft keyboard for text input. The controller will be used for entering text with the soft keyboard, though.

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Jelly Bean comes to Ouya.

The post specifies that on Ouya, developers can’t charge for games to be downloaded. However, developers can include in-app purchases or just give gamers a demo or a couple of levels to play before they’re asked to pay.

It’s also revealed that Ouya is designed to run only one game at a time. This means that there will only be a couple of light services running in the background and the system resources will be available solely for the game being run to use.

The Android-based Ouya console has been garnering a lot of attention ever since it managed to raise $8 million on Kickstarter. The console’s manufacturers have also struck a deal with Square Enix to deliver Final Fantasy III as a launch title.

Game streaming service OnLive has also confirmed that it would be partnering with Ouya. OnLive’s general manager in the UK, Bruce Grove has been quoted in the media as saying, “When OnLive first heard about Ouya, we were excited to see console gaming becoming more available and open. OUYA is rethinking the console business, making waves by using standard technology to make gaming for your living room accessible, affordable and more innovative than ever. In OnLive’s case, we pioneered a groundbreaking, cloud-based system that instantly delivers games to any device on demand. We are pleased to announce that OnLive will be available on OUYA at launch, extending and building on our commitment to make the best games available to everyone, everywhere."

Developers will have to wait until December for the developer kits for the console to be made available. And if you’re one of those who backed Ouya on Kickstarter, you will be getting a developer unit of the console in December too. But if you’re not a Kickstarter backer and still want your hands on a dev unit, the company is making a few extra ones, which you can order once they’re made available, at http://ouya.tv.